#dbsc – A sunny morning greeted the three INSC boats in the 2013 DBSC Spring Series, however with a windy forecast and some strong gusts in the inner coal harbour, questions were asked, were we going to be going ahead? Kenneth Rumball, a skipper of one of three Irish National Sailing School boats reports on yesterday's outing.

The answer was of course we were! Keeping the same crews, everybody was eager to get out and experience the first of the series' big easterly swells with gust of up to 31kts, the decision to go for fractional kites only was the most sensible and logical option for every boat.
The course was announced of a start line just off the East Pier, a beat up to the Muglins Island with the Muglins itself being the weather mark, followed by a sprint downwind, a gybe around the pin end of the line and the yellow turning mark being our leeward before a short fetch to the finish line between 'Freebird' and the West Pier Lighthouse.
INSC 1 (Kenneth Rumball) and INSC2 (Noel Butler) started on the committee boat end of the line with INSC2 getting the better, clearer start but unfortunately then, they decided to do a spot of trawling, letting their kite fall over the side. INSC3 (Andrew Boyle) were just behind with clear air, allowing them to get going quicker than the others.
INSC1 went in close to the shoreline of Sandycove and Dalkey to keep out of the tide and also get into the flatter water allowing for improved boat speed. INSC 2 & 3 took a more offshore route. At our weather mark of the Muglins Island, we were greeted by a 3ft swell and a tide well on the way in. Nervous moments for all as we navigated the choppy congested waters to ensure a good rounding and ultimately a safe one, we witnessed some boats getting uncomfortably close to the rock.
The sleigh ride downwind is unbeatable in a 1720, turning the boat from keelboat to dinghy! Hoists on all boats were delayed as even the more experienced crew on other boats had trouble hoisting, A35s and J109s were seen broaching and crash gybing in the windy weather. All boats powered downwind even on the fractional kites with big grins on all crews faces.
Coming into the last mark, INSC1 was ahead but INSC2 held their kite longer, closing the gap between the two boats but the finishing order was INSC1, INSC2, INSC3. Tired crews gladly headed for the harbour mouth and the warmth of the National Yacht Club.
We're all looking forward to it again next week, with some crews wanting to put the big kites up in that breeze!

#springchicken – J109 Sisterships Joker 2 (john Maybury) and Ruth (Liam Shanahan) have made the early handicap running in Dublin Bay Sailing Club's (DBSC) first of six race Spring Chicken series finishing first and second respectively.

The pair beat the third placed Archembault A35 Another Adventure (Dara Cafferkey) that won the pre-Christmas Turkey Shoot.

Line honours winner INSC 1 (a 1720 sportsboat) was sixth on  the modified ECHO handicap.

Full results from race one are available to download below as a word doc

#dbsc –Dun Laoghaire's Irish National Sailing (INSC) are off to a flying start in boats in the DBSC Spring Chicken Series that got underway yesterday on Dublin Bay.  Here's the INSC's Kenneth Rumball on the day's adventures in the Cruiser and sportsboat series sponsored by Viking Marine.

After last week's postponement, three INSC 1720s ventured out into a building westerly breeze with a lumpy sea and dark wintery drizzle for the start of yesterday's DBSC Spring Series.

Hats, gloves and full waterproofs were the order of the day. After a short postponement, our 1720s got away in the third start. Kenneth Rumball, Noel Butler and Andrew Boyle were the three skippers of the boats. Noel and Kenneth started at the pin end with a strong pin bias while Andy was a little bit further down the line. We tackled the long port leg leaving most of the boats in our start in our wake and catching some of the start 2 boats by the first mark.

Even though the breeze was building and there was talk of rigging the fractional kite as opposed to the masthead, INSC 1 (Kenny) went for the big kite and gybed away after the windward mark into the stronger tide. INSC 2 (Noel) opted for the fractional kite and stuck to the right of the run. INSC 3 (Andy) had also gone for the masthead and was tearing down the middle of the run. By the leeward mark, INSC 1 rounded just behind the RStGYC 1720 Luna Sea with INSC 3 and then INSC 2.

INSC 2 and INSC 3 enjoyed a fantastic battle throughout the race with INSC 2 only getting ahead due to a suspect spinnaker hoist!

The three INSC boats continued to work through the pack and by the last downwind, INSC 1 was just behind Luna Sea. With some great teamwork from the crew, we gybed on Luna Sea on the line, pipping them to a line honours finish in the first race of the DBSC Spring Series.

A great start for INSC 1 and great racing for all INSC 1720s in our race training program!

#dbsc – Another Adventure, Dara Cafferky's A35, the winner of the pre–Christmas DBSC Turkey Shoot, will be on the Dublin Bay line again this Sunday for the Viking Marine sponsored six race Spring Chicken Series.

Sailing Instructions, Handicaps and Starts are downloadable below as word and excel docs.

After the opening race was scrubbed due to high winds last Sunday there is heightened expectation proceedings will finally get underway this weekend but already a forecast of North West gales threatens this first race again. 

The assembled fleet of 52 boats is a few up on last year and for the first time the fleet includes an SB20 sportsboat.

The series is six weeks duration with racing scheduled up to the 10th March, finishing up before the St.Patrick's weekend.

Sunday's forecast issued by Dun Laoghaire Marina shows a deep area of low pressure centered over Wales with a frontal system extending from this low up through the Irish sea into Northern Ireland.

The forecast is for cloudy, misty, windy morning with outbreaks of rain and drizzle. There will be patchy rain that may persist in the Irish Sea. It will be windy with gales developing and rough seas.

DBSC organisers have issued a reminder to give room at all points, particularly at marks, even if you are in the right! 'Keep it pleasant for everybody', is the request.

#dublinbay21s – Celebrating several sailing centenaries have been joyful occasions on Dublin bay recently, seen as opportunities to reflect on the capital's rich sailing tradition.

But the misfortune of the Dublin Bay 21 foot class represents a far bigger problem for Bay sailing than just the loss of this historic boat because it highlights bad news for the future of Ireland's yachting heritage.

W M Nixon's Sailing on Saturday blog recently revisited the joys of sailing the gaff rigged boats and it drew a big response from sailors in this country and abroad.

Dun Laoghaire has, over the past 20 years, turned a blind eye to the plight of one of the oldest keelboat fleets in the world.

Few sailors today remember that around the world, the modern sport of sailing is governed by rules that were formulated here in Ireland in the 1870s, when the clubs in Dun Laoghaire established the bay as one of the world's key sailing centres.

But a century later, for all the talk of the port's rich sailing history, when it comes to getting behind a project to save its own unique Dublin Bay 21 class there is only lip service.

In spite of ninety years hard sailing, an Irish hurricane and an increasing financial burden, the dream of restoring the vintage class to original condition has been kept alive by a group of owners who have struggled to get a restoration project underway.

As far back as 1993 - in a Christmas sailing column - The Irish Times published details of plans to create a working museum of these antique yachts.

In the absence of a commercial sponsor to commit £150,000, the class pressed ahead with a group scheme. It was a notion to provide the nation with a working sailing exhibit estimated at the time to cost £20,000 per boat before the class centenary in 2003. Sadly, it never happened.

If Ireland is to enhance its reputation as one of the founders of yacht racing it must at least be able to preserve its roots.

It took interest from abroad to see the potential in another vintage Irish fleet and just before Christmas another famous class, the Dublin Bay 24 fleet, left for France and salvation on the back of a truck.
But in spite of the age of mass produced glass fibre boats Irish sailing still has the capacity to look after its old designs - however, it also needs the will.

Traditional boat building skills are still to be found here. The Water Wag dinghies; the Howth 17s; the Cork Harbour One Design, Mermaid and Glen fleets are testament to a love of wooden boats.

If it is not feasible to restore the entire fleet surely a consortium of Dun Laoghaire clubs and business interests can set sail in at least one or two?

A change of attitude is all that is needed to put these boats back on the bay again. It's a lovely idea - much more lovely than rotting hulks in a Wicklow farmyard.

#dbsc – Dublin Bay Sailing Club's (DBSC) Cruiser Challenge will be run again in 2013 following a break in 2012.

The popular endof season event for cruiser classes 0, 1, 2, 3, Sigma 33 and Beneteau 31.7 will run under the burgee of the Royal St George YC from Friday 23rd August to Sunday 25th August inclusive.

A Notice of Race will be published shortly.

#dbsc – Dublin Bay Sailing Club (DBSC) launched its pre–season 'Spring Chicken' series today announcing a series of six races to be held on Sunday mornings from 3rd February to 10th March. The entry fee for the Viking Marine sponsored series is €60.00 – including temporary membership of DBSC and National YC.

Entries are accepted at the sole discretion of the Race Committee. An entry form and Notice of Race are both downloadable below as Word documents.

#dbsc – Using five year old cut down Dacron sails and using trawler antifouling on its hull, a sailing school 1720 has finished runner-up in DBSC's Successful Turkey Shoot series yesterday.

Full overall results for the 2012 series and yesterday's race results are downloadable below as word files.

The Irish National Sailing School (INSS) sportsboat with Kenneth Rumball and five novices on board cheered as they took second overall at yesterday's prizegiving in the Royal Irish YC to Darragh Cafferkey's A35 Another Adventure after a hard fought six race series.

In a great spread of designs, one of the oldest boats in the 90–boat fleet, Sarnia, a venerable Sparkman and Stephens design took third overall. That afternoon Rumball switched boats to finish as a winner of the Fireball class in the DMYC frostbites.

#dbsc – Regular Round Ireland competitor Sarnia, one of the oldest boats in the fleet, now leads the Viking Marine DBSC Turkey Shoot with points starting to tighten up for the first ten boats overall.

The Sparksman and Stephens 36-footer leads from the 1720 sportsboat Dambusters using an innovative modified ECHO system that has the ability to handicap from a 60-footer to a 20-foot Flying Fiftteen, all as one fleet and with no dissenters!

Third overall is split three ways between the A35 Another Adventure, Wow, a J111 and the Beneteau 34.7 Black Velvet. Full results downloadable below.

In the four weeks to date, Dun Laoghaire's DBSC Turkey Shoot sailing series has had nearly 60 different non-sailors taking part. Boats that have taken non-sailors racing have benefitted with a handicap discount, a new DBSC initiative. The start times and handicaps for Sunday morning's race are downloadable below as an excel file.